South Korean Master Lee Chang-dong Returns With ‘Possible Love,’ a Intimate Look at Love and Loss

After eight years away from filmmaking, acclaimed South Korean director Lee Chang-dong is back with ‘Possible Love’, a relationship drama that digs into the messy intersection of love, class, work and human connection. The film arrives on Netflix in November, but not before making the festival rounds at Venice and Toronto.

The movie reunites four of Korea’s biggest stars Jeon Do-yeon, Sul Kyung-gu, Cho Yeo-jeong and Zo In-sung in a story centered on two married couples whose lives collide in unexpected ways.

The plot follows Mi-ok and her husband Ho-seok, a man whose life has been upended by job loss. Their path crosses with Ye-ji, a documentary filmmaker, and her wealthy husband Sang-woo. As Ye-ji films a project about unemployed workers, the two couples grow closer, and with that proximity comes a cascade of buried emotions, resentments and hidden desires.

It’s a simple premise that opens into something much larger. Lee uses these four characters to wrestle with fundamental questions about modern life, identity and what love actually means especially when work, money and social standing complicate everything.

Lee has spent years developing this story, and it shows. The director frames the film as an exploration of what kinds of love are still possible in people’s lives and how those bonds can survive. He’s particularly interested in how work shapes identity and how economic vulnerability affects relationships.

Ho-seok’s job loss isn’t just plot mechanics it’s a seismic shift in his sense of self. The film grapples with the growing power of technology and how precarious modern work has become.

But ‘Possible Love’ doesn’t limit itself to romantic relationships. It considers love in its broader forms the kind that connects people and helps them endure uncertainty.

The ensemble cast is nothing to overlook. Jeon Do-yeon, Sul Kyung-gu, Cho Yeo-jeong and Zo In-sung bring contrasting personalities and life circumstances to their roles, giving Lee the chance to explore competing perspectives through four accomplished performers. The casting alone has been a major draw for the film.

‘Possible Love’ makes its world premiere in competition at the Venice Film Festival before heading to Toronto and major festivals in New York, San Sebastián, Zurich and Vancouver. South Korea has already tapped it as its official Oscar submission for Best International Feature Film.

The film opens in South Korea on September 23, hits select theaters in Australia on October 22, and comes to North America and other regions on October 23. It then arrives globally on Netflix on November 6, 2026.

With Lee’s return after nearly a decade and a cast of heavyweight talent backing a story that weaves personal drama with bigger social questions, ‘Possible Love’ is shaping up to be one of Netflix’s major international releases next year.